Page 19 of Speed Trap

A chill crept up my spine as I turned fully to stare at the mangled vehicle.

The side had been bashed in by what could have been a battering ram, or a herd of rampaging wildebeest. Glass shards littered the cement parking lot outside the office building in a haphazard mosaic. Her tires were a wreck.

Hell, the whole thing was a wreck, and whatever calamity occurred had happened when her car was stationary.

I stared at the deflated rubber that sagged beneath the weight of the ruined vehicle and took a step away from my own car. Another. And another. Until I stood next to Sunny’s car, my keys gripped tight in whitened knuckles, starting at the malicious damage.

There was no chance this happened by accident. The targeting was too tight, too perfect to be unintentional. Hell, a drunk on a Friday night could ram a tank into a car on the side of the road and do less damage than this.

Someone had been intent on ruining a special aspect of Sunny’s life.

A very personal part of her life, from the story she told me.

Anger brewed low in my chest, but I pushed it down. That could come later. Right now, action had to come first. My mind fell into the same quiet zone I was intimate with on the track, silence amidst chaos.

When I could actually think.

My thumb slid over the screen of my phone, tapping out words and sending the message before conscious thought caught up with me. My mind was already churning as I turned away to wait at the door.

Sunny’s curvy frame came into view, a slightly bemused expression lighting her gorgeous face. Curls bounced around her shoulders as she closed the space between us in tall boots thatlengthened the curve of her calf, and drew my eye along the line of her thighs.

Thighs that had been pressed against mine minutes ago. Time that seemed like nothing and a lifetime all at once. I stared as she opened the door. What the hell? Was Ifallingfor Sunny Cooper?

“Back for more already, Hawk?” Her lips curved up and my heart took a swan dive.

Too late.

I wasn’t falling for Sunny. I was already there.

I sent her an answering smile, my arrogance on speed dial while I gaped at her from behind the mask I threw up on automatic. “I’ll stare at you all day if you let me, Coops. Those heels should be illegal.”

“So you’re a leg man?” She raised an eyebrow, considering. “Or you have a foot fetish. Not that I’m shaming your kink.” She took a half-step back, her open palms raised to shoulder height.

“Come back here. And for you, I’m an everything man.” The line was cringeworthy at best but I had bigger issues. “Coops. You have someone stalking you? Someone who wants to hurt you?”

Her eyes narrowed to dangerous slits as she glared at me through thick lashes.

Well hot damn if that’s not the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen.

Time and a place, Hawk.

I slid my hand around the curve of her hip and hung on for dear life. “You got appointments for the rest of the day?”

“Well, yes. Of course.”

“Cancel them.”

Her eyes flared, alongside her temper. “You don’t get to tell me what to do, H?—”

“There’s something you need to see.”

CHAPTER EIGHT

SUNNY

Istared at the remains of my father’s sparkling blue cobra as my heart rose into my throat. Air couldn't fit past the enclosed space because my stomach was already there. Glass littered the pavement, metal twisted into deformed shapes that a car should never make, Any moment I expected to retch on the walkway. The constant pressure of Hawk’s hand on my lower back alone kept me steady and sane.

“I’ll call—”Someone. Who?“Uh— The police. No, insurance. Hell, I can’t think—” I swallowed as the whole parking lot shimmered behind a veil of unshed tears. I didn’t even care if he saw me cry right now. “Who would?—”

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